Modern medicine has utilized sensors for decades—thermometers, blood pressure monitors, urine analysis strips are all sensors in various forms. These sensors, when subjected to input, provide a reading that translates to a data point for a physician in his/her diagnosis of a patient. However, these sensors provide isolated readings.
The Internet of Things, or IoT, refers to the internetworking of smart, connected devices for the purpose of collecting and exchanging data. However, the field of medicine does not currently utilize smart IoT-enabled sensors to full potential. Additionally, conventional dosimeters include electronic personal dosimeters that provide continual monitoring and film badge dosimeters that are for a one-time use. However, continual readings, without more, fail to provide the necessary safety precautions for doctors or other healthcare facility employees routinely in the vicinity of radiation equipment. For example, a doctor may be constantly exposed to radiation levels just below a threshold that if exceeded would cause the doctor to be alerted; however, such constant exposure may be detrimental to the long-term health of the doctor yet the doctor would not be alerted of such. Similarly, film badge dosimeters merely provided a single use case and whether the use case is over a 24 hour period or a 30 day period, for example, no continuous monitoring is available. Therefore, as with the electronic dosimeter example provided above, the use of a film badge dosimeter without more fails to provide sufficient safety precautions.
Furthermore, conventional electronic personal dosimeters tend to be expensive, e.g., often exceeding a cost of $100 per electronic personal dosimeter. Thus, providing such for each employee often proves far too expensive for hospitals or healthcare facilities. As a result, some or all employees may not wear or carry a personal dosimeter and be unaware of their exposure to radiation.
Thus, an improved system and method for real-time detection and recordation of radiation exposure in a location-aware manner is needed.